Dershowitz: The charging instrument filed against George Zimmerman is “unethical” and will never make it past a judge

posted at 9:05 pm on April 12, 2012 by Allahpundit

Four and a half minutes of brutal criticism for prosecutor Angela Corey, whom he accuses straight-out of grandstanding for political gain. It’ll take you 30 seconds to read the entire charging instrument but I’ll save you 20 and post the critical bit:

The unlawful killing of a human being, when perpetrated by any act imminently dangerous to another and evincing a depraved mind regardless of human life, although without any premeditated design to effect the death of any particular individual

Dershowitz’s point: There’s nothing in the charging instrument that suggests probable cause to believe Zimmerman had a “depraved mind regardless of human life” when he shot Martin. On the contrary, he notes, the facts as stated are consistent with self-defense. (Tellingly, there’s also no reference to Zimmerman’s injuries.) The prosecution can amend the affidavit to strengthen its case if the judge throws it out, but then you’re left wondering why they didn’t submit a more detailed affidavit in the first place.

I don’t understand Corey’s strategy in charging him with murder two. Maybe she thinks Zimmerman will plead to a lesser charge, but if it’s anything less than manslaughter she’s going to take tremendous heat for having gone too easy on him. That’s a weird predicament for a politically-minded prosecutor to put herself in. She’ll take some heat even if she gets him to cop to manslaughter, in fact, since manslaughter is a crime of simple negligence and people who want him prosecuted believe Zimmerman’s far more morally culpable than that. (This is all assuming he’d be willing to make a deal, which, given the weakness of the charging instrument, he probably isn’t.) In fact, I also don’t get why she insisted on filing an affidavit of probable cause instead of taking the case to a grand jury. If they refused to indict him, she could have blamed them for him getting off and claimed she’d given it her best effort. As it is, if Dershowitz is right, her own affidavit’s about to be tossed by a judge and then she’ll have to answer for why she couldn’t even get to first base on a conviction.

Maybe her plan is to use the judge here as a get-out-of-tough-cases card? She probably knows she can’t get Zimmerman on murder two, but she also doesn’t want to be the one to have to break that to the public. She also doesn’t want to have to try to prosecute him on murder two if the evidence isn’t there, which would be a risk if the grand jury did indict him. So instead she’s taking the middle path: Go directly to the judge with a weak charging instrument and rely on him/her to throw it out. Then come back with a new affidavit listing a lesser charge — manslaughter or murder three — and say that she has no choice but to prosecute Zimmerman under that because the court stymied her on murder two. I’ll be curious to see what the fact pattern in those affidavits looks like because, frankly, if it’s as thin as the excerpt I posted up top, I’m not sure she’ll get the court to sign off on those charges either.

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It was not an opinion you moron. It was stated under oath, not that you know what that means, that Zimmermans account of having his head banged into a sidewalk is not supported by the evidence.

That is not an opinion you idiot, that is EVIDENCE that contradicts Zimmermans claim.

And another thing you idiot, Zimmermans lawyer did not question what that evidence is, why? I will tell you why, Zimmermans lawyer is not going to question evidence that proves his client is not telling the truth.

But you being Mr. Knowitall, crap for brains, can’t figure out anything.

It was not an opinion you moron. It was stated under oath, not that you know what that means, that Zimmermans account of having his head banged into a sidewalk is not supported by the evidence.

It’s opinion, you idiot, not that you would know the difference between opinion, evidence, the truth.

That is not an opinion you idiot, that is EVIDENCE that contradicts Zimmermans claim.

What evidence? His opinion? lol!

And another thing you idiot, Zimmermans lawyer did not question what that evidence is, why? I will tell you why, Zimmermans lawyer is not going to question evidence that proves his client is not telling the truth.

It was a bail hearing – not a trial. Didn’t we cover that already? Of course, everything must be explained to you 30-50 times and you still don’t get it.

But you being Mr. Knowitall, crap for brains, can’t figure out anything.

damian1967 on April 25, 2012 at 5:15 PM

I and many others know that you are a fool, dishonest, and have some sort of mental defect.

The only thug was Zimmerman that required anger management classes, and should not of been allowed to have a gun in the first place.

According to the legal docs released, Zimmerman had a run in with the police, but then again don’t let the facts hit you in your empty head.

He is a Cop Wanna Be Thug!

He will be convicted.

damian1967 on April 25, 2012 at 6:08 PM

Yawn. The judge found any old police contacts irrelevant, they are not admissible if there were a trial, he was a license CCW, and the only person likely to be convicted is YOU. Though I suspect that they may divert you for a psych observation first.

Gilbreath testified that Zimmerman repeatedly contradicted himself while being interviewed by police and provided statements inconsistent with physical evidence and witness recollections.

Prosecutors have also located a witness near the site of the shooting who described seeing the shadows of two men pass by her home, one chasing the other, immediately before Martin was killed. The pursuit, in the direction of Martin’s home, indicates that Zimmerman initiated the confrontation, Gilbreath said, under questioning from Rionda.

Rionda asked Zimmerman if he had changed his story to police “as it went along.”

“Absolutely not,” Zimmerman said.

Really? Sounds like that was a set up to him actually changing the story.

Assistant prosecutor Bernie De La Rionda requested that the judge set no bail or require a bond of $1 million, arguing that Zimmerman’s past history of violence and the evidence against him in the shooting of Martin made him a threat to the public.

“Our position is that he will still be a danger to the community,” De La Rionda said.

Thw Judge did not make any ruling about his past, thus meaning, Blake LIED. IS A LIAR!

Where did you say bail hearing? And where did the judge say they were irrelevant? The judge NEVER said that, try reading the transcripts.

SHow me where the judge ruled this? Or said it, because he didnt, you lie over and over

damian1967 on April 25, 2012 at 7:26 PM

Does everything have to be spelled out to you? Oh, yes, it does – because you are a psycho. This was a bail hearing. The DA tried to argue that these past contacts were grounds for the excessive bail they wanted. The judge found that they were irrelevant and set a low bail.

I can’t argue with someone who is so clearly mentally ill. 16 pages of your BS. Any one who has tried to discuss this with you has given up because you are so obnoxious and delusional. Again, seek psych help.

The Miami Herald reported that Zimmerman had a Myspace social media account where he wrote insulting remarks about Mexicans. He referred to an ex-girlfriend as a “hoe,” talked about beating a felony rap and complained that every Mexican he ran into pulled a knife on him. One line suggested that friends went to jail rather than snitch on him.

“Workin 96 hours to get a decent pay check, gettin knifes pulled on you by every mexican you run into!” Zimmerman wrote.

Defense attorney Mark O’Mara said Zimmerman’s account had been hacked and abandoned — but acknowledged that the posts cited by The Herald were written by his client.